John 8:12 NKJV
[12] Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
Good Morning!
The prophet, Isaiah, lived from 700 – 539 BC. During his lifetime, he spoke of the light coming to the world to bring salvation to the ends of the earth. Among the thousands of prophesies that were fulfilled by Jesus, this is one that can be understood very clearly…
Isaiah 49:6 NLT
[6] He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me. I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”
What is light? The dictionary defines it as “the natural agents that stimulates sight and makes things visible.” Is light the absence of darkness or is darkness the absence of light? Hmmmm? My belief is that light is the absence of darkness as mankind has a sinful nature and is left in the dark until light is shed upon us.
In the Exodus, God led the children of Israel by night by providing light as a pillar of fire. God exposes darkness with light as He has since the beginning of time. Even in the creation process, God said, “Let there be light.” So if He needed to create light then there was only darkness before then.
Exodus 13:21 NLT
[21] The LORD went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night.
Genesis 1:3-5 NLT
[3] Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. [4] And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. [5] God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.” And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day.
Jesus then tells us He is the light of the world and if we follow Him we won’t have to walk in darkness. The darkness that Jesus speaks of here is not physical darkness, but spiritual darkness. If left to our natural state of being, we are born into spiritual darkness, thus the term “born again” has so much meaning. When we are born again, we come to a place where we can walk in the light spiritually.
1 John 1:7 NKJV
[7] But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Jesus used many physical analogies that are in this world to the things of heaven. He spoke in parables so that He could put things in terms that our earthly minds can understand. The things of heaven are just too much for our small earthly brains to handle, so He had to explain things in terms that we understand. His teachings are filled with hundreds of examples. He came to save us and in order to do so, He had to make sure that we understood the meaning of His words. So light is a simple physical thing that we can understand. We can understand how light exposes darkness and how light gives color to the world. If we didn’t have light, we couldn’t see the beauty of creation. We wouldn’t understand the color of the blue ocean or the green landscapes. Light gives life to the world in the physical as it warms the earth and feeds vegetation through photosynthesis and likewise spiritual light gives life to our spirits. Think of spiritual light as photosynthesis for our souls, feeding us daily and filling us with the spiritual nutrition we need.
We are to be bearers of the light. Jesus tells us that once we receive the spiritual light in our lives, then we are to let our lights shine before men so that they may see your good works and glorify the Father in heaven. We sometimes forget that part. But it is a good reminder for us to daily thank God that we are in the light and help us to bear His light by reflecting His glory to other men.
Matthew 5:14-16 NKJV
[14] “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. [15] Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. [16] Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
There are hundreds of scriptures that talk about light. I have just brushed the subject here and this would be a good self-study for you to continue on your own. But the simple understanding that Jesus is the light of the world and we are to be bearers of His light is the simple message that should be received here.
I pray for you today that you will let God’s light shine into your hearts and souls and be a reflection of His glory.
I love you and am praying for you today!
Dad
Further reading about light. These are just a few of my favorite scriptures about light. There are many more…